St. Peter's Church, Copenhagen
| St. Peter's Church | |
|---|---|
| Sankt Petri Kirche | |
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|
| Location | Larslejsstræde 11 Copenhagen |
| Country | Denmark |
| Denomination | Lutheran |
| Previous denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | www |
| Architecture | |
| Style |
Gothic with Baroque features Rococo (spires) |
| Completed | Church: 15th century Spire: 1757 |
| Specifications | |
| Number of spires | 1 |
| Spire height | 78 metres (256 ft) |
| Clergy | |
| Senior pastor(s) | Peter Krogull |
| Laity | |
| Organist(s) | Mark Baumann |
St. Peter's Church (Danish: St. Petri Kirke, German: St.-Petri-Kirche) is the parish church of the German-speaking community in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is situated at the corner of Nørregade and Sankt Peders Stræde in the city's Latin Quarter. Built as a single-nave church in the mid-15th century, it is the oldest building in central Copenhagen. It is also notable for its extensive complex of sepulchral chapels.
St. Peter's Church was in the Middle Ages one out of four Catholic parish churches in Copenhagen. It is first mentioned in 1304 but was most likely founded in the 12th century. The first church burnt down in 1380 but was rebuilt shortly thereafter. After the Reformation the church building was for a while used as a canon and bell foundry.
Frederick II presented St. Peter's Church to his German-speaking subjects in 1585. The building was renovated by Hans van Steenwinckel the Elder who also added a gablet upper floor to the uncompleted tower, which was however replaced by a spire in the 17th century. The church became a centre for Copenhagen's political, economic, cultural and military elite, which, like the Royal Court, relied on German for everyday use.
The rapidly growing congregation made it necessary to expand the church in several stages. Christian IV added a northern transept in 1631 and a southern transept in 1634. Just 60 years later, Christian V extended the north transept with a further three severies. The distinctive sepulchral chapels arose between 1648 and 1740.
St. Peter's Church was severely damaged in the Copenhagen Fire of 1728. The interior was lost to the flames but the outer walls were left intact and the church could fairly easily be rebuilt by Johan Cornelius Krieger. The church was first given a short lantern spire which was replaced by the current copper-clad spire in 1756-57. The spire survived the British bombardment during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1807.
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